[Typo3-dev] TER License Problem

[Martin Kutschker]

Alexander Langer schrieb:
> Michael Scharkow wrote:
> 
>> That's got nothing to do with TER. An extension to TYPO3 is by 
>> definition GPL
> 
> By what definition?
> 
> Definitely not the GPL definition, since an arbitrary extension
> does NOT have to be placed under the GPL.  "arbitrary" means it doesn't 
> share any Typo3-code, e.g. isn't derived from anything the Kickstarter 
> produced.
> 
> Yes, Typo3 is covered by the GPL, but the GPL clearly reads "derived 
> from", and extensions are NOT derived from Typo3 (i.e. they share code).
> I checked that twice last time this issue came up on the German Typo3-list.
> 
> Extensions use Typo3 as a framework for execution, which can easily be 
> replaced by third party software (if existent), e.g. Alex4, which might 
> be commercially licensed and doesn't share any code with the original 
> Typo3 codebase.  This is actually how and why BSD splitted from the 
> original AT&T Unix distribution, but vice versa.
> 
> Typo3 does nothing more than providing an API for the execution of those 
> extensions, similar as e.g. PHP provides an API for the "script 
> language" PHP, and PHP was long-time GPLed software.

Using an API makes a derived work. Your linking argument with the LGPL 
is bogus. If a library (ie an API) is GPLed, any program that uses it 
must be *compatible* to the GPL *)

So no, you cannot write an extension and licence it with an incompatible 
licence.

As for HTMLarea, yes I'm also worried that we have a licence problem 
here. But since it's this time the other way round (TYPO3 isn't hurt), 
nobody cared til now.

Masi

*) BTW, Apache foundation says its new licence is compatible, FSF says 
no. But whatever.